Added: Jul 20, 2008
From: MattExzy
Duration: 2:54
This video is a brief update on the working information we have to go by about the jammer - the company supplying China with the equipment used, the frequencies of stations it is jamming (which is relatively pointless because there are so many) and the general uneasy feeling about the whole thing.I was surprised by the interest in the Firedrake radio jammer - other people have heard it, and lots of people who listen to shortwave radio know it's there.Although, China hasn't mentioned anything publicly. No western government has said anything. It's pretty much business as usual.In the lead up to the Olympics, the jammer's use seems to be increasing.The music in this clip is my own simple compilation whipped up in Apple's GarageBand - think no more than 4 tracks! It has music from the Firedrake jammer in the background being ran through GarageBand's filters.Just over a month ago, China's regime also began exerting pressure on the one and only carrier of NTDTV, an independent news source, and cut off the satellite that it used to broadcast into China:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpCjpbrP9Nghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VChnlx_Ph44http://wikileaks.org/wiki/NTDTV_China_sat_channel_shutdown_transcript_2008NTDTV themselves didn't bow to pressure, just the company that leases them use of the satellite.It's a worrying trend, and shortwave radio is just one more medium that China's government is actively blocking. Unlike flipping off a channel to a satellite, shortwave radio blocking requires much more resources - for an 'outdated' medium, the CPC are giving it a great deal of attention.As a side note, while many countries are cutting back or even eliminating their shortwave services and opting for internet streaming instead, China have maintained and even increased their shortwave presence.My original take on the Firedrake Jammer - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_xWyR0BANE
Channel: News
Tags: 6b beijing censorship china chinasat chinese dxing falun firedragon firedrake goldenshield gong jammer jamming media music olympics protest radio shortwave station tibet
Rating: 5.00 (1 ratings) Views: 196' favoriteCount='4 Comments: 1
MattExzy Says:
Sep 15, 2008 - Thanks! Yeah, the profits bit is a bit generalizing. I'm not anti-profits, anti-capitalist by any means, but I find it odd that companies like Google and many others bend over backwards to comply with China's crackdown on ideas. The Thales example is a demonstration of that on a different level. It gets to ethics too I guess, but as long as it makes money, they're seemingly happy to comply.
pitcalco Says:
Sep 15, 2008 - An excellent and informative message. You alienated me a bit by the "insatiable profits" stuff, but on the whole this was a very good video and a message that needs to get out. Thanks.